Full papers: Guidelines for Authors
Papers should not exceed 8000 words and should contain the following:
The first page containing the title of the paper, and author(s) information (name/s, affiliations and e mail addresses and phone numbers).
Abstract:
A brief statement of the purpose/objective(s), design/methodology/approach, main findings and contributions of the study. Abstract should not exceed 250 words.
Key words:
keywords should encapsulate the principal topics/areas of the paper. Have a maximum of 5 key words, separated by semi colons.
Background:
A broader introduction to the topic and an explanation/statement of the aim/objective(s) of the paper together with reasons/rationale for carrying out the study.
Literature review:
A review of the previous studies in the relevant area, leading to the argument the author try to build.
Methodology
/design/approach:
(might not apply to conceptual papers)
an explanation of the research strategy/approach used for the study, sample selection, and data collection methods.
Data analysis and
presentation:
Data analysis technique/s used and results. Can incorporate tables and figures where appropriate.
Discussion of findings:
A discussion of the findings of the study. Comparing and contrasting the findings with previous research findings will add value to the article.
Conclusion and contributions:
Highlight the main findings of the study (summary) and contribution to theory, methodology etc.
Practical implications
(if any):
Should state how the findings of the study will have an impact on the practicing managers.
General guidelines and formatting
| Font type | Times New Roman |
| Line spacing | Single |
| Paper size | A4 |
| Margins | Top, bottom and right – 1”Left – 1.25” |
| Title | Not more than eight words in lengthFont size: 14
Bold and All Caps Centered |
| Author(s) details: | Name (s) and affiliation(s) and contact details of the corresponding author (email and phone)Font size: 12
Centered |
| Section headings (up to three levels) | 1. 1. Bold, initial cap only, font size 121.1.Bold, italic, initial cap only, font size 12
1.1.1. Italic, initial cap only, font size 12 |
| Paragraphs | ½” indented |
| Tables | Heading : above the table as Table 1. Title of the tableSource: Below the table in font size 10 |
| Figures | Heading: above the figure as Figure 1. Title of the figureSource : Below the figure in font size 10 |
| Displayed quotations | Over 40 words or when appropriateIndented ½” left and right |
| Appendix | After referencingAppendix 1: Title |
| In-text citation | Work of one author: use the Surname of the author & year of publication. (Perera, 2006)work by two authors: use the surnames of both authors with the year of publication (Fitzgerald & Brown, 2007)
work of three or more authors: very first citation first time (Fitzgerald, Brown, & Perera, 1988) subsequent citations use surname of the first author and et al., with year (Fitzgerald et al., 1988), if part of the sentence e.g., Fitzgerald, Brown, and Perera (1988) in the very first citation and subsequent Fitzgerald et al. (1988) citation of multiple work: surnames and years of publications on alphabetic order with semi colons (Alwis, 2007; Fitzgerald et al., 1988; Perera, 2001; Silva, 2003) |
| Referencing (APA style) | At the end of the paper, a reference list in alphabetical order should be supplied: |
| Journal articles | |
| One author | Surname, initials. (Year of publication). Title of the article, Name of the Journal, Volume (issue), Page numbers.Example
Guest, D.E. (2011). Human resource management and performance: Still searching for some answers. Human Resource Management Journal, 21(01), 3–13 |
| Up to and including 7 authors | Surname of the first author, initials, & surname of the second author, initials. (Year of publication). Title of the article, Name of the Journal, Volume (issue), Page numbers.Example
Dissanayake, K. & Takahashi, M. (2012). Emerging organizational structures: Implications for leaderless organizations. Colombo Business Journal: International Journal of Theory and Practice, 03(02), 17–26 |
| 8 or more authors | Surnames of the first 6 authors with initials, then three elipses and the name of the last author, (Year of publication). Title of the article, Name of the Journal, Volume(issue), Page numbers.Example
Fitzgerald, L.F., Shullman, S.L., Bailey, N., Richards, M., Swecker, J., Gold, Y.,… Perera, R. R. (l988). The incidence and dimensions of sexual harassment in academia and the workplace, Journal of Vocational Behavior, 32, l52-l75. |
| Journal article electronic version | Same as above with the URLExample
Shepherd, R., Barnett, J., Cooper, H., Coyle, A., Moran-Ellis, J., Senior, V., & Walton, C. (2007). Towards an understanding of British public attitudes concerning human cloning. Social Science & Medicine, 65(2), 377-392. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2007.03.018 |
| Books | Surname, initials. (Year of publication). Title of the book. Place of publication: Publisher.Example
Hettige, S.T. (2004). Current social crisis(2nd ed.). Colombo: Godage publishers |
| Annual Reports by government and abbreviation of names of institutional authors | Central Bank of Sri Lanka (2016). Annual report 2016. Colombo: AuthorIn-text citation – Central Bank of Sri Lanka (2016) states that.. or the level of inflation was 6% (Central bank of Sri Lanka, 2016)
If using abbreviations in the first instance write name in full and abbreviate in brackets or parentheses. Reference list should have the name in full E.g. First citation Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) (2016) states that inflation is 6% subsequent, CBSL (2016) If in parentheses (Central Bank of Sri Lanka[CBSL]. 2016) First citation subsequent (CBSL, 2016) |
| Book chapters | Surname, initials. (Year of publication). Title of the book chapter. In editors initials, surnames (Eds). The name of the book. Place of publication: Publisher.Example
Morse, J.M. (2007). Sampling in grounded theory. In A. Bryant & K. Charmaz (Eds.), The sage handbook of grounded theory (pp. 229-244). Los Angeles, CA: SAGE. |
| Thesis | Surname, initials. (year). Title. Types of thesis, University, Country.Example
Dissanayaka, A. M. (2006). Knowledge management in Sri Lankan organizations (Unpublished master’s thesis). University of Colombo, Sri Lanka. |
| Website | World Bank (2018). Who are we. Retrieved from http://www.worldbank.org/en/who-we-are |
The reviewing process
The co-chairs and the relevant track chair will review each paper, and if it is deemed to have potential for presentation at the IRCMF 2018, it will then be sent for double blind peer review. Based on the reviewer’s comments and recommendations, the co-chairs and the relevant track chair will decide whether the paper should be accepted as it is, accepted subject to minor revisions, accepted subject to major revisions, or rejected.
Please note that only full papers will be considered for the review process.
Copyright
Papers submitted should not have been published before, in their current or substantially similar form, or be under consideration for presentation or publication elsewhere.
Authors are welcomed to submit their papers as e-mail attachments on MS Word format 2010 to the following e-mail address.
For further information please contact the Conference Co-Chairs